Imagine our horror when our 49-year-old daughter was suddenly struck with atypical Guillain-Barre Syndrome, unable to breathe, unable to talk or write, paralyzed, and totally dependent on others. Imagine yourself coming out of sedation to an environment such as the ICU at the University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Hospital in Glen Burnie intubated and with a new feeding tube. C could scratch out some words on the whiteboard. Once, she wrote, "I'm terrified." Her pain was severe most of the time, and our daughter was very unhappy. And then Christina was assigned to C.

Christina has that rare expertise called "presencing" or fully being with a patient with all attention focused on the patient in their moment of need (Benner, 1984). Christina described her emerging exquisite relationship as having "a vibe going" with C. She was able to quickly establish a trusted healing relationship, often simply saying, "I've got you." For six weeks, C could only communicate with her eyes, a small nod of her head, no, and movement of her hand for yes or okay. Christina was able, through patient tiny movements of pillows and wedges, to make her comfortable while providing comfort through her touch. Small clinical nursing measures that add up and run over the proverbial vessel of care. I was able to directly observe Christina care for C on several occasions and was so pleased to see this expert nursing practiced at UMBWMC on 6 West. Other nurses also were awesome at caring for our daughter, but Christina was the shining star.

Christina managed to interpret the kinds of pain our daughter was experiencing and worked with C and her physicians to select appropriate strategies for pain management and control. For example, placement of a Fentanyl patch on her lower back helped C manage her lower back pain from her extended time in bed. At the same time, Christina took specific measures to combat immobility hazards and support C's positioning with pillows and wedges and communication about the importance of turning and keeping her beautiful skin intact.

Christina's caring showed itself when she had C's call button changed to a bulb-like device that she could hit with her arm. For the first several weeks, C had a regular call bell that she could not use as she had no use of her hands or arms. Christina located a bulb-like device that C could hit to call for the nurse and had it connected directly to her phone. Christina seemed very present when we were visiting, and C was calmer and more ready to understand and participate in what was going on. Christina exemplifies UMBWMC's commitment to Nursing Excellence and compassionate care through her exquisite patient care as evidenced daily in her care of our daughter. She is the extraordinary expert described in Patricia Benner's (1984) seminal work which the reader will note frames this nomination of Christina Meadowcroft.

Christina made such a meaningful difference in our daughter's care. We believe that this is due to Christina's deep compassion for her patients. Her compassionate listening was crucial to relieving our daughter's suffering from this tragic disease. Her commitment to caring was never more evident than when she was caring for our daughter. We saw it. And our C is better for it as she continues her hard journey of rehabilitation.